A Stable Alternative to the Office Chair
|
A Stable Alternative to the Office Chair |
|
My wife Kris was the first person to draw me out here. We had just purchased a horse "Scout", her lifelong dream, for her 40th birthday. Woodlock was to become Scout's new home.
My lessons started with learning how to approach a group of horses in the pasture, selecting a suitable horse, connecting a lead rope to it and guiding the stead through a series of gates and doors. This can be a be nerve-racking at first, particularly when trying to navigate through the mine field of "horse pies" and electric fences.
Lessons start out slowly learning basic body position pre-signals, signals and reinforcements. At first all of the horses seem the same, slow, predictable and lazy, much like the trail horses I rode as a kid. After a couple of lessons things start to change. As my signaling to the horse became more consistent, the horses began to respond with more and more precision. After a half dozen lessons I felt a profound transition from me "riding on" the horse to me truly riding the horse.
|
The meditative 25 minute drive out of the city into the countryside is only the beginning of the experience. Once the car comes to a dusty rest at Hugo's Woodlock stables, the chaos of the city and the prelude of the busy day is quickly forgotten. Here the sounds of trotting hoofs, the smells of manure and hay set a different tone in the failing evening light.
I had been around horses numerous times in my life, yet they held little significance to me. Surprisingly, my interest changed within a couple of weekend visits to Woodlock. Suddenly I was taken not only with Scout, but with almost every horse I came upon. Me horse lover? I wouldn't have even have classified myself as much of an animal lover, let alone a horse lover. It's now been over 5 months since I started group riding lessons here. Western, of course. While there are a few of those proper English types here, the laid back cowboy types set the tenor.
Inside the stable, its time for the tools and tack. A horse needs to be inspected and brushed before saddling it in order to keep its coat in good shape. This is also a good time to do some gentle talking to your four legged riding partner. Finally, comes the saddle blanket and saddle, and the bridle. Once everything is comfortably adjusted for both the horse and rider, it's time to head out on the trail or into one of the four arenas.
As the lessons progressed the assignments become more and more challenging. Walking, trotting and cantering in circles progressed into backing L's, running figure eights and maneuvering complex patterns. The more difficult the task the more physically and mentally challenging it becomes for both the horse and the rider. No matter what the assignment, the hour lessons pass too quickly and it's time to unsaddle the horse and return it to the pile of hay its been dreaming of. With the unclipping of the lead rope and a swat on the flank we say good-bye in the sweet night air. I'm still amazed at how tired, yet refreshed, I am at the end of a good one hour ride. Returning to my car under the nights infinite blanket of stars, the world is always a different place. |
Back to Libra Ledger Index
52@40 Index
